The Commandant Nigerian Defence Academy
ABRIDGED BIOGRAPHY OF MAJOR GENERAL IM YUSUF
OFR GSS FCM FCMH NAOOCM FTAM NOOC psc (j) psc (+) ndc (BG) fdc (+) MA (KCL) FHSN FNARC FSESN FSPSP
Maj Gen Ibrahim Manu Yusuf joined the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) as a member of 37 RC in 1985 and was commissioned into the Nigerian Army Armoured Corps in the year 1990. Since then, he has served meritoriously in various capacities. Prominent among which are Commander 21 Armoured Brigade and General Officer Commanding 7 Division Maiduguri. During these periods, he earned commendations for gallantry in the numerous operations carried out by his Brigade and Division. Following the successful operation conducted by his Division in Sambisa Forest in 2018, he was awarded the Nigerian Army Outstanding Operational Command Medal, making him the first General to earn such an award in the NA. He was also the Force Commander Multinational Joint Task Force and was conferred with a national award “Knight of the Order of Chad” by the Government of Chad in recognition of his achievements in harnessing the resources of the coalition force to conduct series of successful operations in the Lake Chad Islands under very difficult circumstances. Before his present appointment as the Commandant NDA, he was the Chief of Operations at the Army Headquarters Department of Operations. He has held his current post as Commandant NDA for 15 months within which he has radically transformed training to an unprecedented level by ensuring that the cadets are equipped with knowledge and skills to deal with contemporary threats.
Beyond the mentioned awards, General Yusuf is a recipient of the Grand Service Star, Field Command Medal of Honour, General Operations Medal, Foreign Training Assistance Medal, ECOMOG Medal, Multinational Joint Task Force Medal and Operations ZAMAN LAFIYA, LAFIYA DOLE and YANCIN TAFKI Medals. His military awards also include psc(j) and psc(+). He is a Fellow of the Defence Colleges of Nigeria and Bangladesh. He also holds Fellowships with the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Historical Society of Nigeria, Solar Energy Society of Nigeria and Society for Peace Studies and Practice.
His academic qualifications include a BA (Hons) degree in History and Master of Arts Degree in Defence Studies from Kings College London, amongst other postgraduate degrees. Over the years, he has also attended numerous professional and academic courses at the Naval Postgraduate School Monterrey USA, Norwegian Defence International Centre Norway, Transition International in the Netherlands and Harvard Kennedy School Boston USA. To his credit, he has 7 publications – 3 contributions to book chapters and 4 journal publications.
In his leisure time, he enjoys walking, reading and watching movies.